Irish director Richie O’Donnell tells Siobhán Cronin why his earlier film on the Corrib gasfield led him to document the struggles of Irish fishermen in his fascinating new movie.

CASTLETOWNBERE features in a new Irish movie which examines the threat to our fishing industry and the battle for our natural resources.

Atlantic, a movie by award-winning director Richie O’Donnell, has already won the Best Irish Documentary at the recent Dublin International Film Festival.
Richie has form in documenting the struggles of coastal communities – having directed the much-respected film on the Corrib Gas controversy in Mayo, The Pipe.

Genuine, on-going consultation with the local community from the point of discovery 20 years ago might have ensured better outcomes

When the sky over Broadhaven Bay in northwest Mayo turned “pure orange” last New Year’s Eve, it was evident that gas had finally come ashore after years of tribulations over Shell E&P Ireland’s controversial Corrib gas project.

For many local residents, the “flaring” at Shell’s Bellanaboy terminal was a frightening occurrence that seemed to confirm their worst fears about the safety of refining volatile gas onshore rather than at sea, which is standard international practice.

This was at the heart of the long-running “Shell to Sea” campaign, which had earlier been vindicated by An Bord Pleanála’s 2002 decision to refuse planning permission for the scheme after one of its senior planning inspectors, Kevin Moore, concluded that Bellanaboy was “the wrong site” for such a “highly obtrusive” industrial project that involved safety risks as well as “significant environmental costs”.

[Shell to Sea] A monument to corruption

British engineers’ group say more democratic approach could have avoided cost overruns

The Corrib gas project is a template for “how not to undertake a development”, according to a new planning approach published by the British Institution of Civil Engineers.

Although the gas project has secured its final Government approval from Minister for Energy Alex White, the prospect of further legal challenges and the large Garda presence at an “invitation-only” opening reflects the fact that it still does not have community consent.

Two of the report’s four authors say that had both Shell and Government agencies adopted a more democratic approach, they could have avoided cost overruns, including “the loss of at least €600 million loss to the tax payer”, and could also have “avoided the serious ensuing conflict with the local community”.

[Shell to Sea] It seems Minister for Energy Alex White is ashamed to show his face with Shell despite doing their bidding and signing off on the final Corrib gas consent on 29th Decemeber, despite a pending judicial review of the EPA licence.

Joe McHugh representing Government at invitation-only event in Belmullet

Colm and Gabielle Henry live at Glengad, Co Mayo. Their home overlooks Sruwaddacon Bay and the pipeline’s landfall. Photograph: Keith Heneghan

The €3.5 billion Corrib gas development is due to be opened by Minister of State for Natural Resources Joe McHugh on Monday, almost 20 years after the gas discovery was reported off the north Mayo coast.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny had been earmarked for the invitation-only event, but will be at Downing Street in London. Corrib shareholders Shell, Statoil and Vermillion are hosting a plaque unveiling and lunch in Belmullet, almost 15km from the gas refinery.

While much of the town’s focus is currently on sale of the €13.7 million winning Lotto ticket in Carey’s newsagent, the project opening represents a significant milestone.

It was given final approval by Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Alex White on December 29th, and valves controlling the wells at the field, 83km offshore, were opened on December 30th.

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Blast from the Past

Garda whistleblower Maurice McCabe’s first contact with a TD came about because he saw Clare Daly TD on ‘Tonight with Vincent Browne’ talking about policing of Corrib Gas protests, writes William Hederman

The repercussions for Garda whistleblowers Maurice McCabe and John Wilson will be familiar to others who have publicly embarrassed An Garda Síochána. They were clearly acting in the public interest, but their revelations brought the force into disrepute, and the two men suffered as a result. Revenge was exacted – not only by colleagues, but also by way of public denunciation by the Garda Commissioner (“disgusting”), the Minister for Justice (“not co-operating”) and by various other parties loyal to the force.